NOVEL WEB Chapter 15: Beheading (7)
"What are they doing? Are they going to start a war directly? Look at how many undead armies they've brought, they're almost filling up the entire Dragon Valley!"
"That shouldn't be possible, right? We just signed an alliance with the Lich King..."
"But we also just caused the death of the Lich King."
"How can you say we caused it? We were just late in providing reinforcements. They should take revenge on the Black Dragon, not us!"
"I don't think so... Do you remember what the Lich King said? He was such an upright person, I don't believe he would be blinded by hatred."
"But he's already gone..."
The Golden Dragons were already in a heated argument within the secret chamber.
...
Meanwhile, the elders of the Golden Dragon Clan were also holding an emergency meeting.
"This is a hostile move. There have never been so many undead in Dragon Valley, yet we don't even have a reason to stop them."
"We must find a way to communicate with them, or something big is bound to happen."
"But how should we communicate with them? Tell them that due to our indecisiveness, they lost their king? I think this will completely enrage them..."
"Maybe... maybe we should prepare. If war is inevitable, we better be ready."
"We've already lost our last lines of defense. If war occurs, we have almost no hope of winning. A peaceful resolution is our only way out."
...
The liches were also energetically debating within the spiritual world.
"The Golden Dragons have never been trustworthy. The idea of allying with them was wrong from the start!"
"They not only insulted the alliance, insulted themselves, but also insulted us."
"Negotiation? No negotiation! I don't want to talk to them, not a single word!"
"What do they have that we need? That cheap alliance? Nothing! They have nothing! Not even honor, they no longer deserve to exist in this world!"
"Kill them, leave no one behind!"
"Hehehehe, I can't wait to turn them all into a bunch of bone dragons."
...
Richie quietly listened and observed his father's outline.
"Do you need healing?" Sarina asked softly, "Delia should be able to revive your body; that way, you'll return to your original form."
"No need." Richie continued staring with his lifeless eyes.
Time passed by slowly.
In the quiet Dragon Valley, the shadow of war was rapidly growing, seemingly engulfing everything.
The Golden Dragon side was in a state of panic. The anger from the undead was burning boundlessly, with almost no one left to speak for the Golden Dragon Clan.
For thousands of years, when has the powerful Undead Clan ever suffered such humiliation?
If they were to lose in an honorable war, there would be nothing to say. But their hard-won king died in a despicable decapitation operation, due to their allies' indecisiveness—no lich could accept that.
*Even if they returned entirely to their phylacteries, they would never accept such humiliation.*
...
Evilia once again approached the door, bowed her head, and crossed her hands carefully in front of her chest.
Standing quietly, the room was filled with liches in every corner, even the corridors and balconies. A heap of liches hovered in midair, all looking at her. With skeletons and soul flames burning fiercely in their eye sockets.
Only Richie, surrounded by many liches, didn't look at her at all. He just quietly stared at his father's relics.
The hostility was palpable.
Forcing herself, Evilia said softly, "Master Richie, our elders still wish to meet with you to discuss the following matters. We deeply understand your current feelings, but this is very important. It concerns the fate of both the Undead Clan and the Golden Dragon Clan."
"I don't want to see them," Richie replied bluntly.
Evilia felt a bit flustered: "If you really don't want to, could you... could you appoint a member of the White Bone Holy Light Court to meet with our elder council? We're very sorry for the matter of the Lich King, and we are willing to offer compensation. Whatever it may be, we can discuss it."
"What do you intend to use to compensate?" Bruto asked softly.
"That... that depends on what you want." Evilia forced a smile and stammered, "That's the meaning of negotiation, isn't it? We're allies and need to overcome this crisis together."
"No need for negotiations, I can tell you what I want right now. I want your grand elder to be my bone dragon, can you do that?"
Evilia was completely stunned by these words.
"That's not fair; it can't be just you who gets one. I heard they have six elders, maybe I can have one too."
"Hahaha, six are not enough to go around."
"Do you have any other institutions? Just below the six elders. Before we start the war, we need to divide them up to avoid unnecessary disputes."
The liches debated.
Evilia was shocked and hurriedly emphasized: "We... we are allies!"
"Yes, allies. If you become bone dragons, then you can fight alongside us even better, right?"
"Hahaha, we only trust dead dragons now. All the living dragons are untrustworthy."
"Don't worry, we'll give you a chance to make amends and fulfill the alliance. In another way."